Accra, Dec. 18, - The Domestic
Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Ghana Police Service and
stakeholders held a day’s validation workshop on Sexual Gender Based Violence
(SGBV) Case Protocol and Codified Handbook on Laws use by DOVVSU for
Standardised Case Management.
The Codified Handbook highlights,
the legitimate procedures or duties that case officers of both DOVVSU and the
Police Service would follow during the handling of a SGBV cases.
The workshop brought together
representatives from the Ministry of Gender and Social Protection, the Attorney
General’s Office, Heads of DOVVSU Units and the Police.
Chief Superintendent Felix Koku
Mawusi (Rtd), one of the Authors of the handbook said, it was made to give case
officers guidelines to follow when dealing with cases of SGBVs.
He said the book would help law
enforcement officers in legal and successful prosecution of perpetrators of
SGBVs, adding that “This handbook highlights the code of conducts, procedures,
steps, and the laws involved in dealing with cases of sexual gender based
violence, starting from the moment the victim gives a statement to the point
when the case is sent to court through the Attorney General.”
Chief Superintendent Mawusi said
a lot of consultations were held with key stakeholders to review the best
practices of other West African countries and adopted them into this handbook.
He said: “It is necessary to say
that none of this will be enforceable without the law, so we have highlighted
the laws that deal with SGBVs in Ghana.”
Chief Superintendent Reverend
Lawrencia Akorli, National Coordinator of DOVVSU said, the book would teach
case officers on how not to re-victimize victims of sexual gender based
violence.
She said there were times when
police officers in charge of such cases, blame victims for being violated,
which was a re-victimization of the said victim.
“The reason why we are putting
this book together is to first enable all police officers to have access to
this book in times of emergencies, and places where DOVVSU is not present, they
can go through and familiarise themselves with the procedures involved in
handling a victim of a gender based violence, domestic violence or all other
related violence cases that falls within the mandate of DOVVSU”.
Chief Superintendent Akorli said
the benefit of the handbook to the general public would be receiving the same
treatment DOVVSU officers would have given to them.
She revealed that the Domestic
Violence Act of 2007, section 732, subsection 3 stated that, ‘Victims of SGBVs
accompanied by police officers to conduct medical examinations to establish the
occurrence of an abuse, must be treated free of charge’ and that payment for
medical examinations by Victims was illegal.
“However medical form for
domestic violence filled and sent to hospitals requested that an amount of GHC
2.50 be paid to the hospital by the Heads of Police Stations where the report
or complaint was made.”
According to the DOVVSU National
Coordinator, the evidence the police would present to the court is based on the
signed medical form by a doctor proving that the said victim was indeed abused.
“So it is necessary that the
medical examination be performed. The reason why doctors ask for fees from the
police or Attorney General, I think is because they have to appear in court to
testify and not because of the medical examination they are expected to perform
on victims to establish that fact”,
The Handbook Is funded by the
United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA), and is expected to be launched on
Thursday, December, 21, 2017.
GNA
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